The ship began to move, and Rina braced her legs as they navigated out of The Dogs and into open water. Her eyes darted across the horizon constantly, on the lookout for any sign of other ships. Of course, the boy in the crow’s nest was probably much more capable, but she couldn’t help herself.
As they picked up speed, she began to relax a bit and let her mind wander. She touched the coin at her neck, rubbing it idly as she stared across the channel at Virgin Gorda.
A coin to give sight.
How could a coin give sight?
Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth and the life. No one cometh unto the father, but by me.
Rina couldn’t help but think they were missing something. There had to be a connection, didn’t there? Between the poem and the Scripture? Why else would Mellick include them both?
I am the way . . . no one cometh . . . but by me.
The way.
The way to what? To the treasure, of course. What else could it be?
A coin to give sight.
Hesitantly, Sarina pulled the coin from her shirt, a quick glance ensuring nobody was paying attention to her. Jonathan was distracted talking to Max a few feet away, and everyone else was attending to their duties. She eyed the coin, rubbing over it with her thumb.
The dastardly pirate kept it close at all times, because peeking through the hole gave him unbelievable power.
What kind of power?
To see other worlds—worlds of adventure and treasure.
Her heart pounding, she lifted the coin to her eye and peered through the hole in the center. She gasped as everything suddenly fell into place.
“Jonathan!” She hurried over to him, excitement racing through her.
He held up a finger as Max asked, “So you think we should walk across Virgin Gorda, rather than risk laying anchor where Kane did?”
“He’ll be expecting that,” Jonathan replied. “We’ll need to be careful.”
Rina bounced on her toes, unable to wait another second. “No, we don’t!”
They looked at her in surprise. “What are you on about, Smith?” Jonathan asked.
“We don’t need to worry about Kane, because the treasure’s not on Virgin Gorda,” she said.
Jonathan eyed her skeptically, crossing his arms over his chest. “Well, where is it then?”
“I’m not sure yet, but I’ll know soon.”
“And how do you expect to do that?”
Rina grinned widely as she held up the coin. “Because this is going to tell me.”
It is done. The treasure is secure.
Some may call me a monster for what I have done, but those who knew too much could not be allowed a chance to reveal that information.
I know God may not forgive me my sins. It is the price I must pay to protect my child’s future. And if any others would stand in the way of that goal, I would not hesitate to cut them down as well.
- The Journal of Simon Alistair Mellick, 22 April, 1666
“Are you certain this is the right spot?” Rina asked as Jonathan stood next to her on the bow of the ship, examining the sketched copy of the half of the map Kane had stolen. Unfortunately, the original had not been in the bag with the rest of the relics, and neither had the other half. Max and Hutchins hovered nearby, but Jonathan had snapped at the rest of the crew to get back to work so they could focus on the task at hand.
“As certain as I can be,” he replied, handing the map to Max. “Now what?”
Rina pulled the chain holding the coin over her head and held it out to him. “If I’m right, the positioning of the coin on the map is important. I think if we’re in the right spot, looking through the hole will show us the way to the treasure.”
“A coin to give sight,” Jonathan murmured.
“Yes, and my father told me the story about the pirate looking through it to find treasure. I think he suspected the purpose of the coin all along.”
Jonathan took the coin and held it up to his eye. “Which one do I look through?”
“I don’t know,” Sarina said with a frown.
Max examined the map. “The orientation must be important,” he said. “Since it’s at the bottom of the map, we need to be facing north with the coin held as it’s drawn here.”
Jonathan looked through it again, then muttered to himself and pulled out his spyglass. He fitted the coin into the eyepiece and once again peered through it.
“Bloody hell,” he muttered.
“What is it?” Rina bounced on her toes, heart beating wildly.
“See for yourself.” He handed her the spyglass and she lifted it to her eye. Sure enough, with the coin in the spyglass, the smaller hole was filled with Virgin Gorda, but the larger hole circled a smaller island to the west.
“What island is that?” she asked, removing the coin so she could get a better look.
“Isla Diosa.”
“But the natives call it Erzulie Freda.” James appeared at that moment, leaning back against the mast as he crossed his arms over his chest. “Is that where we’re headed then?”
Jonathan glared at him, and Sarina quickly interceded. “Are you familiar with the island, James?”
He nodded. “I’m familiar with most of the islands around here. I was born not far away.”
“Well, that’s perfect,” she said with a cheerful smile. “You’ll be a big help, I’m sure.”
Jonathan grumbled something she couldn’t quite make out, then gave the order to set sail for Isla Diosa.
The crew was tense when they made it onto open water, everyone on watch for a sign of another ship. Once they arrived at Isla Diosa, to avoid drawing attention, they used the confiscated dinghies to get to shore, with Jonathan, Rina, Max and James in one, Sam, Crawley, and a couple of mates she couldn’t remember the names of in the other. Rafferty, much to her delight, was left in command of the ship. If Kane and Renard showed up, the master gunner would be needed more on the ship than on shore.
She didn’t miss the hostile glances Jonathan shot at James, and she knew he’d taken what Rafferty had told him to heart. She’d tried to talk him out of it, explained that James could have many reasons for being on deck at strange hours, and that it made perfect sense that he’d gone into hiding when Kane had attacked—after all, hadn’t many of the men? But Jonathan would not be swayed. He trusted his crew more than this man whom he’d only known for a short time, regardless of who his father was. In the end, Rina tried to play peacemaker as much as possible and stayed true to her conviction that James would prove loyal and valuable in this quest.
Isla Diosa was smaller than Virgin Gorda, its most impressive feature a large volcano near the center of the island, surrounded by jungle and large mounds of scattered boulders. They came ashore on a wide beach with unfortunately no place to hide the dinghies. They overturned them, tossing handfuls of sand over the hulls to disguise them as much as possible before heading farther inland. Rina glanced back as they left the beach to see the Arrow in the distance, en route to Virgin Gorda—a ploy, should it be needed, to buy them time if Kane did indeed return.
She hoped it would be enough.
They trudged through the sand and into the shade of a grove of palm trees. Jonathan eyed the surrounding area and consulted the map once again.
“Now what?” Max asked.
Jonathan crumpled the map slightly, letting out a groan of frustration. “We must be missing something.”
“Aye,” Hutchins said wryly. “The other half of the map.”
“I’d hoped once we were here things would become a bit more clear, but . . .” Jonathan took off into the trees, pacing back and forth. The men settled in, sitting on the sand or leaning against a handful of large boulders, waiting for their captain to work things out. Rina took a deep breath and did a bit of pacing herself, exploring the surrounding area. Through the trees, she could spot the rise of a hill to the west, the base littered with rocks but curving upward into a high bluff.
“Per
haps we should climb up,” she suggested, pointing to the bluff. “Get a better perspective of the island?”
Jonathan followed her gaze, considering the suggestion. He shrugged. “Good an idea as any, I suppose. Hutchins, you come with me. The rest of you—“
A loud crack had them all whirling in the sand, swords drawn. Jonathan and Max exchanged a tense glance as the foliage rustled from the direction of the beach. Had Kane found them already? If so, how? And what of the Arrow and her crew? Rina’s fist tightened around the hilt of her sword, and she braced her feet, holding her breath as she waited.
Low voices came closer, filtering through the breeze, the words indistinguishable.
Then . . . a laugh.
A female laugh.
Another glance between Jonathan and Max—this one of amused relief as they sheathed their swords. “Avast!” Jonathan called out to the men. “’Tisn’t Kane.”
Rina gaped at him in surprise, still tense and watching. “Who is it, then?”
He smirked as a flash of blue appeared between the trees, and Rina made out a group of people moving toward them. She breathed in relief when she recognized one as Jenkins . . . then Thomas and Allegheny . . .
“How in the world?” she murmured.
Max laughed. “How do you think?”
The men came forward with grins and handshakes, and Rina finally realized there was a fourth member in their group hidden behind their large frames, a hat with a large blue feather peeking out between their shoulders. Jenkins approached the captain, and Rina squealed when the fourth person was revealed.
“Charlotte?”
“Hello, Rina. It’s good to see you again,” she replied, stepping forward with a grin. “What do you think?” She twirled around, and Rina had to laugh in response. Charlotte was dressed as she was, in breeches and boots, a dark blue coat brushing at her knees and the blue feather curving proudly from her hat.
“You look wonderful! But what are you doing here? How did you find us?”
Charlotte laughed. “Well, that’s kind of my job.” She turned to Jonathan, sobering slightly. “Not long after you left, I felt that you needed me—or you would need me. I saw your men here going ashore and set off to intercept them.”
“It sounded a bit daft, but your sister can be quite convincing, Cap’n,” Jenkins added. “We caught passage on the Agua Clara. Captain Harry says hello.”
Jonathan absorbed it all with an amused half smile, then pulled his sister into a hug. “I’m glad you’re here,” he said. “I was just hoping for someone to point us in the right direction.”
Charlotte beamed and reached out for Max’s hand. “Well, then,” she said. “It appears I’ve arrived just in time.”
Jonathan watched impatiently while Sarina showed Charlotte the journal and the map. He’d tried to do it himself, but after a few minutes, his sister had not-so-politely told him to leave her alone.
She said he kept staring at her like he was waiting for something to happen. He had to admit he was. Jonathan still didn’t have a full grasp on how Charlotte’s visions worked, even after all these years, and he could occasionally try to push her a little too hard.
Charlotte snapped that she wasn’t a horse you could train to jump with a click of the tongue. She could help them along to a certain extent, but the visions generally came when they came.
Jonathan wasn’t particularly fond of that aspect of Charlotte’s gift.
They decided it was best all-around if Sarina explained what they’d learned so far about the treasure. Max stayed nearby, of course. The man could never be too far from Charlotte when she was within reach. But he kept silent, allowing the women to pore over the documents undisturbed.
Jonathan hadn’t been quiet, which was why he’d been banished to the boulder on the other side of the palm grove. He’d sent the rest of the men—save Ceron, who sat across from him in the sand, tearing a leaf to bits—to survey the area and keep watch for Kane. Jonathan, meanwhile, sat staring at Charlotte and Sarina, willing them to come up with something—anything—to help them move forward.
He also found himself smiling softly whenever his gaze rested on Sarina, remembering their extraordinarily pleasant interlude in bed, and the way she had calmed him down when he’d bolted. He didn’t know what he’d expected when he’d revealed his concerns, but it definitely wasn’t that Sarina would convince him to experiment with other means of romantic pleasure.
The woman was definitely full of surprises.
He watched her now, head bent close to Charlotte’s as they studied the journal, gesturing with one hand to make a point. He hadn’t lied when he’d told Sarina this was all new to him. What he hadn’t said was it wasn’t simply the fact that she was a lady. True, his experience with women in the past had been limited to those of the professional variety—an exchange of lust and fun for coin, and nothing more. But it wasn’t the fact that Sarina was different that had him so nervous—even terrified, at times.
It was the fact that he was different.
He found himself longing for things he had no business longing for, hoping for things that could never be. And his panic about the possibility of a child was not solely because he feared becoming a father. It was that—for a dizzying moment—he realized he wanted it.
He wanted her, and not temporarily. Jonathan had to admit, if only to himself, that he loved her, and that was the most terrifying thing of all.
Feminine laughter drifted toward him, and he smiled before he realized what he was doing. He was a scoundrel of the worst sort, he admitted to himself, to take what Sarina offered when he could offer nothing in return. But when she adamantly insisted that it was what she wanted—that he was what she wanted—he couldn’t resist her.
A scoundrel indeed. Pathetic and weak. But then again, he’d never claimed to be otherwise.
With a heavy sigh, he tried to shake off his unproductive thoughts and focus on the task at hand. He caught sight of Ceron and his jaw tightened. Now this was a problem he could deal with.
James, however, beat him to it. “I know you don’t trust me,” he said, tossing pieces of leaf to the sand. “Although I’ve given you no reason not to. In fact, I’ve only tried to do my part since I came on board the Arrow.”
Jonathan schooled his expression, giving nothing away. “I trust few men.”
“But me less than others,” he said, his jaw clenched tightly. “I see the way you watch me, as if waiting for me to turn on you at any moment.”
“Will you?”
“Of course not!” He got to his feet and brushed the sand off his clothes. “What could I possibly have to gain from that?”
Jonathan watched him carefully, trying to read his expression. “Men will do many things for the right amount of coin.”
James laughed humorlessly. “I have no need of coin, other than to feed my belly. I have no desire for riches. And despite what you may think of me, I am not without honor.” His accent grew thicker in the heat of emotion. “I do not betray my friends.”
“I’d hardly call us friends.”
“Rina,” he snapped. “Rina is my friend. I would never betray her.”
“Everything all right, gentlemen?” Charlotte interjected, looking from one to the other warily. Jonathan hadn’t noticed the two women approaching.
“Fine,” he said gruffly. “Any luck?”
“Not really,” Sarina said, offering James a sympathetic look before turning back to Jonathan. “Although Charlotte does feel we’re on the right island, at least.”
“Well, that’s something.”
Charlotte sighed. “I thought maybe James here could tell me a little about it. I understand it’s called Isla Diosa—Goddess Island, is that correct?”
James spared Jonathan one more hard look before turning his attention to Charlotte. “Aye, that’s what the foreigners call it at least. It’s always been uninhabited because of the volcano, although it hasn’t erupted in—“
“The foreigners
?” Charlotte tipped her head.
“What?”
“You said foreigners call it Isla Diosa.”
James nodded. “Aye, Columbus named it that. The natives still call it Erzulie Freda, though—named for the mountain.”
Charlotte froze. “Did you say Erzulie Freda?”
“What is it, Charlotte?” Jonathan asked.
She ignored him, waving Sarina forward. “Let me see the journal again.” Sarina handed it to her, and she flipped quickly to the torn back page. “Seek Aphrodite’s kiss, whence light doth play. And the sword will lead the way,” she read, slapping the book shut with a beaming smile. “Aphrodite’s kiss!” she exclaimed.
“Bloody hell, Charlotte, what are you on about?” Jonathan stood with his hands propped on his hips.
Charlotte rolled her eyes, but the smile didn’t fade. “Erzulie Freda,” she said, enunciating carefully, “is a Vodou goddess.”
“Aye.” James nodded, stepping away from the tree. “The island was thought to look like her lying on her back in the sea—the volcano, her face. It’s where the name came from.”
Jonathan huffed. “But what has that got to do with—“
Charlotte held up a finger. “Among other things, she’s the Vodou goddess of love.”
It took Jonathan a moment, but when he made the connection, a slow smile lit his face. “Aphrodite.”
Charlotte grinned. “Aphrodite.”
“I think,” he said, “that we’re heading for the mountain.”
They followed an overgrown path through the thickening jungle, palm trees blocking out the sun overhead to create a cool canopy as they trudged through the underbrush. Eventually, the trees thinned and the ground became rockier, large boulders delineating the base of the inactive volcano. They split up, leaving two mates on guard duty along the path, the rest spreading out along the base of the mountain, searching for anything unusual.
Jonathan wasn’t certain what, exactly, but he really didn’t see any other option.
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